One of the pioneers of British Thrash Metal, VIRUS started their worldwide spread in 1986. Founded from the remains of a punk band (CRIMINAL DAMAGE), they had a hard time gaining traction until their second record, Force Recon, coincidentally also the name of a song on this album. After a failed attempt to infect the United States and touring with many well-known bands of the era, they called it quits. 30 years later, VIRUS has reemerged and trying to once again spread across the land. Their latest release, Evilution Apocalypse dropped on May 20 via Combat Records.

The album starts with the title track, "Evilution Apocalypse", a six-minute track that begins with a decent intro. Railing against the evils of technology and how it will lead to the inevitable end of the world. Parts of this track are really tight and the musicianship shines through, but other sections feel choppy and awkward. The message is timely and relevant though. Similarly, "MBG" alludes to aliens taking over and stripping away our very DNA. Whether this is fictional or not, it can be applied to some of the sciences of today.

Two songs that seem a little off to me are "Thrashville" and "Defective Detective (The Ballad Of Inspector Gadget)". While both are decent songs, they feel like they should be the songs played towards the end of a show as a nod to their old stuff. It would be like ANTHRAX putting out "I'm The Man" in 2020, not a great sound for a band that has been around this long. And while I support bands having fun and doing things they enjoy; it has to be natural. This feels a little forced, like the guys are trying to recapture their youth and the sound they had back in their heyday, rather than showing how much they have matured.

VIRUS is a good band, but I cannot rank them among the best. Too many of the tunes are choppy and feel a little discordant. That does not mean this isn't a good album or doesn't have some catchy tunes and fun little bits of musicianship.... It does. You can tell there is talent in this band. Some of the guitar work is truly spectacular and the drumming is on point. The harmonized vocals work well in the songs that use them. I like this album, it has some really good work on it, it just doesn't draw me in and hold my attention like some of the others coming out right now. This is just not one of the most memorable albums of the year for me.